Friedman's bid could be his last

AUSTIN — Before the March 4 primaries, it became apparent that Texas Democratic leaders didn’t want entertainer Richard “Kinky” Friedman to run for state agriculture commissioner, or for any public office — at least as a Democrat.

State Sen. Leticia Van de Putte of San Antonio, for example, who is running for lieutenant governor, made a robocall touting South Central Texas rancher Hugh Fitzsimmons III as the “serious” candidate for agriculture commissioner.

But Fitzsimmons finished a distant third in the Democratic primary, and in the May 27 runoff the choice for the party’s faithful is either Friedman or Jim Hogan, a former dairy farmer who hasn’t campaigned for the office or even has a campaign website.

Friedman said despite the party’s snub and claims that he is not a serious candidate, he is a genuine contender. He is well-known for his jokes — like saying he supports same-sex marriage because gays “have the right to be as miserable as the rest of us,” — and for his trademark black fringed Western jacket, black hat and burning cigar.

“I think we have a great chance,” Friedman said. “We’re finally where we want to be and I think we’re going to surprise a few people.”

This means defeating Hogan in the runoff and going on to win the commissioner’s office in the Nov. 4 general election.

However, at 69 and with two failed tries on his record –in 2006 he ran for governor as an independent but finished fourth, and four years ago he ran for agriculture commissioner as a Democrat but was defeated in the primary – if he loses again this would be his last hurrah, Friedman said.

“I don’t plan on losing but if I do, this would be it for me,” he said. “I don’t see myself doing it all over again when I am 73.”

For the time being, though, he is confident of winning the runoff because Hogan’s refusal to campaign shows contempt for the voters, Friedman said.

“He wants to serve the people but he doesn’t want to meet them,” he said. “What kind of candidate is that?”

Hogan could not be reached for comment because a phone number listed under his name was out of service and the Democratic Party of Texas did not respond to a request for other contact information.

Legalization of marijuana

Friedman’s main issue is the legalization of marijuana because, in his view, it would be a win-win for Texas, just like it is for Colorado and Washington State — the only states that have legalized the sale of the controlled substance.

He wants to make this election a referendum on lifting the prohibition of marijuana and hemp for a variety of reasons, mainly generating millions of dollars for the state and for medical use.

“This is not about long-hair hippies smoking dope,” he said. “This is about the future of Texas. Israeli scientists have determined that it helps cure cancer.”

Decriminalizing marijuana would also reduce prison overcrowding because many incarcerated people are doing time just for possession or consumption of small amounts, he said.

Equally important, the decriminalization of the controlled substance would also hurt the drug cartels because a big chunk of their money is from the sale of it.

Although Friedman also has spelled out his positions on other issues — like water conservation and desalination; feral hogs (he proposes harvesting the animals and selling the meat to generate revenue for the state); and even on illegal immigration — the marijuana legalization proposal gets the most media attention.

Friedman’s chances

Rice University professor Mark P. Jones, who analyzes legislative and statewide races, said Friedman is likely to win the runoff, partly because of his name identification and partly because Hogan is largely unknown.

But since Texas remains a Republican-majority state, he doesn’t have much of a chance of winning in November, said Jones, chairman of the political science department at the Houston-based institution.

If he wins his party’s nomination, Friedman would face Libertarian Party of Texas candidate David “Rocky” Palmquist and the winner of the Republican runoff — either former state Rep. Tommy Merritt of Kilgore or former Rep. Sid Miller of Stephenville.

Merritt and Miller are busy fighting each other and have said little about Friedman and Hogan. Merritt said in a recent interview he will worry about his Democratic opponent after the GOP runoff is over.

Another campaign pitch is that unlike the current and previous agriculture commissioners, he does not intend to use the office as springboard for other offices, Friedman said.

Current commissioner Todd Staples, as well as former commissioners Susan Combs and Rick Perry used the office to run for higher office, he noted. Staples ran for lieutenant governor but finished third in this year’s Republican primary; Combs ran successfully for state comptroller in 2006 and Perry for lieutenant governor in 1998.

Perry became governor two years later when Gov. George W. Bush resigned to become president.

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Kinky's pretty cool for a liberal I read all his columns in Texas Monthly he makes more sense
than any liberal I know ,if I was still a liberal thats who I would vote for, I don't think we need to
to have people walking down the street smoking marijuana cigars though